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TALLAHASSEE — Last year, the Florida Legislature mandated Citizens Property Insurance Corp. to offer a cheaper, more limited coverage option to homeowners, potentially saving them up to 70 percent on their premiums.

Citizens, which is trying to raise its prices in order to shrink in size, grumbled about the mandate for months and has put up several roadblocks to keep people from signing up for the cheaper coverage. Company officials say the so-called HO-8 policy offers dangerously limited coverage that could harm unsuspecting consumers.

"They're going to flock to Citizens to buy this piece-of-garbage policy," Citizens Consumer Services Committee member Greg Rokeh said in December, before throwing up his hands in disgust.

The state-run insurer has been successful in making sure that didn't happen. In the three months since the HO-8 policy has been available, only 47 people have signed up for it statewide. Many say they have never heard of the new policy option, which would reduce their premiums significantly at a time when homeowners are struggling to pay the rising cost of insurance.

Citizens has done little to inform homeowners about the HO-8 option and has placed several restrictions on who can sign up for it. The company has also issued a strongly worded advisory to insurance agents warning them they could be sued after offering the policy to homeowners.

The company has argued that the cheaper coverage option would attract people to Citizens at a time when the state-run insurer of 1.3 million policies is furiously trying to downsize. Company officials have also said the HO-8 policy's limited coverage would end up hurting consumers, who might not be privy to what kind of insurance they are signing up for until it's too late.

"We just think that's it's really important that (homeowners) know what they're getting and what they're not," said Citizens spokesman Michael Peltier.

Critics say the company is simply trying to keep homeowners from saving money on their premiums, as much as 60 percent in Miami-Dade County and 57 percent in Pinellas County.

"They put up every blockade they can so that policyholders don't have an opportunity to get a lower premium," said Rep. Mike Fasano, a New Port Richey Republican. "Shame on Citizens for doing that."

Citizens is requiring agents and homeowners to sign two additional forms before people can sign up for the cheaper policy. The forms include frightening language about what's not covered in the HO-8 policy.

Unlike the standard HO-3 policy, the HO-8 does not cover "water losses," a fairly common claim area that includes things like plumbing leaks. One of the HO-8 policy options provides only "actual cash value" for damaged property, which can be significantly less than the standard "replacement cost" and unacceptable to some mortgage companies.

The HO-8 policy does not cover "weight of ice and snow," "freezing," or "falling objects," loss claims that are infrequent in Florida. Standard wind damage from a hurricane would be covered.

Florida's insurance consumer advocate, Robin Westcott, has warned people against flocking to the HO-8 just to receive the lower rate.

But Westcott conceded that the HO-8 policy is better than going with no coverage at all, a decision many have made as Citizens has raised the cost of insurance by hundreds of millions of dollars in the past two years.

Fasano said many of his constituents can no longer afford coverage from Citizens, and the Legislature mandated the HO-8 to give people a lower-priced option.

Charles Williams of Spring Hill is one homeowner who has decided to go bare. As he was struggling to pay the rising cost of insurance with Citizens earlier this year, he wrote a letter to state officials in February saying that he'd like to have the option of a cheaper, less comprehensive policy.

No one ever told him about the HO-8 option before he canceled his insurance policy.

"I haven't heard about it at all," he said. "I'm not insured right now. I'm tired of $2,600 a year. They're a ripoff."

A fifth-generation Floridian who owns his home outright, Williams said he'd rather take his chances with a hurricane than continue paying annual premiums on the house he purchased for $80,000.

It's not clear if Williams would be eligible for the HO-8 policy. Citizens decided to restrict the HO-8 policy option only to homes 50 years or older valued at $200,000 or less. There are about 122,000 Citizens policies that would be eligible, less than 10 percent of all customers.

Citizens claimed it restricted the policy in order to emulate the private market, which offers the HO-8 only on a limited basis.

But company officials have openly expressed disdain for the HO-8 policy, saying it would hurt efforts to "depopulate" Citizens. The state-run company is the largest insurance firm in Florida.

"The HO-8 offers less coverage than the (standard) HO-3," Citizens chief actuary Brian Donovan said late last year. "The concern is that the final rate is much cheaper than the HO-3 and may attract new policyholders to Citizens."

>>fast facts

The HO-8 Policy: What's covered?

The HO-8 policy at Citizens covers several potential losses including: fires, hurricanes, explosions, riots, smoke, vandalism, theft and catastrophic ground collapse. It does not cover pipe leaks and other water losses, which are some of the most common claims in non-storm years. It also has other restrictions, including caps on theft claims and replacement cost payments.

We've looked at homes close to the gulf (not waterfront but closer than we are---about 2 1/2 miles inland from Siesta Beach). Funny thing, when you ask the real estate agents for a ball park estimate on how much the current homeowner is paying, it sounds like Obama or Holder or one of their IRS buddies, all Clintonesque speak). We looked at one home with an owner/agent. He admitted that he self-insures. Not everyone can afford that option. It's too expensive to face the total loss of the house and all the possessions inside and be left only with the lot.

The insurance is a mess in Florida. We can't get a package deal on homeowners and auto, because so few major insurers will cover homes here. You have a choice of not good and not so good for the homeowner's. God protect the poor homeowners here if a hurricane hits. We've been lucky so far.

As far as the water damage, I doubt if any of the policies cover that. We have separate flood insurance for that.

‎" To the world you are just one more person, but to a rescued pet, you are the world.""A Nation of Sheep Breeds a Government of Wolves!"

We've looked at homes close to the gulf (not waterfront but closer than we are---about 2 1/2 miles inland from Siesta Beach). Funny thing, when you ask the real estate agents for a ball park estimate on how much the current homeowner is paying, it sounds like Obama or Holder or one of their IRS buddies, all Clintonesque speak). We looked at one home with an owner/agent. He admitted that he self-insures. Not everyone can afford that option. It's too expensive to face the total loss of the house and all the possessions inside and be left only with the lot.

The insurance is a mess in Florida. We can't get a package deal on homeowners and auto, because so few major insurers will cover homes here. You have a choice of not good and not so good for the homeowner's. God protect the poor homeowners here if a hurricane hits. We've been lucky so far.

As far as the water damage, I doubt if any of the policies cover that. We have separate flood insurance for that.

I pay about $2000/yr but I had to fight with Citizens to get them to write a stripped down policy. Part of their scam are the "included" items that they value highly but which I don't give a damn about like outbuilding and interior possessions. I just wanted a basic rebuild at local rebuild rates. I got it, sort of. They don't really cover the things which matter to you anyway, like art and antiques.

I pay about $2000/yr but I had to fight with Citizens to get them to write a stripped down policy. Part of their scam are the "included" items that they value highly but which I don't give a damn about like outbuilding and interior possessions. I just wanted a basic rebuild at local rebuild rates. I got it, sort of. They don't really cover the things which matter to you anyway, like art and antiques.

We don't have Citizens, but have pretty decent coverage for about $1600 a year. The rates were lower in St Louis, which is amazing when you consider the tornado and earthquake threats. I would just feel safer with a better known name for homeowner's coverage.

‎" To the world you are just one more person, but to a rescued pet, you are the world.""A Nation of Sheep Breeds a Government of Wolves!"